I'm delighted to welcome back the lovely Hayley Stone to the blog today to continue celebrating the release of Counterpart, the sequel to the fantastic Machinations! I've put the spotlight on Hayley and asked a bunch of questions about her writing journey. Her answers are awesome and honest and you're going to love this interview. So, here we go!

​Counterpart is the second in a series, and a lot of authors are pretty vocal about how hard writing a sequel or even just that second book can be. How was it for you? Are there more books to come? How are you going with those?

It was hell. Plain and simple.

Granted, the beginning came fairly easy, but then I suffered a mental health crisis, and it became like a Chinese finger trap—the more I tried to pull out of the anxiety, or ignore it altogether, the worse it got. I had to make changes to my mindset, my diet, my habits, etc. in order to progress. Eventually, I got better, but writing that book was hard. No doubt about it.

Time has eased some of the painful memory of that moment in my life, but it hasn’t erased it completely. I don’t want to give the impression that Counterpart simply fell out of me. If anything, I fell into that book; it almost devoured me, but I clawed my way free. A lot of what I experienced while writing it also made it to the pages in the form of Rhona’s trials and struggles.

I do have plans for a third novel, which I have also started, but it’s been even more of a challenge than Counterpart was, so far. It seems like the better I get at writing, the harder it becomes. But I still love it, absolutely. I still use writing to cope with the world and process life. Like any career, you just have to take the good with the bad.

What's your writing journey been like? Did you have a long process from inspiration to publication? Can you give me a bullet point break down of your process to date?

Bullet points it is!

2011, begin drafting Machinations

2012, finish first draft; pass it off to a few readers; query prematurely

2013, more edits; enter Amazon’s Breakthrough Novel competition, make it to second round

2014, enter Pitch Wars; fail to get in; ruthlessly cut 15k+ words from the ms; through a twist in fate, end up in Pitch Wars after all; polish manuscript; query; get an agent!

2015, six months on sub before getting a two-book deal with Random House’s digital SFF imprint, Hydra; begin writing the sequel to Machinations

2016, debut Machinations and its sequel, Counterpart

This list fails to account for two facts:

I have been writing my entire life. Machinations was the second novel I ever finished, but the fifth one I ever wrote. And before that, I’d written fanfiction, role-played, etc.

And the editing...generally how is that process for you? Do you find it easy; do you have any words of wisdom you can impart to those in their caves?

On the whole, I find editing a whole lot easier than drafting. I’m a perfectionist, so drafting can be kind of a pain. I have a desperate need to get things right the first time, or as close to it as possible. Editing then becomes a natural extension of that desire, and it’s like I’m going with the grain instead of against it.

As for advice, let’s see…

Go with your gut. If you know something’s wrong, fix it. Don’t drag your feet and make excuses for it. On the reverse, if you feel very passionately about keeping something in the book, fight for it. You know the best way to tell your story.

What kind of things do you do with regards to marketing and publicising both your novels and you? Do you enjoy this part of the business of being an author? Do you have a team who work with you?

My team at Hydra does a lot of the marketing for me, but I’ve invested in Facebook ads and experienced some mild success there, judging by the Amazon rankings. Additionally, I try to maintain a strong social media presence, specifically on Twitter. I’ve found that the best way of marketing myself and my books is just simply connecting with other readers and writers, and giving back to the community that helped me along in my journey. People remember kindness.

What's been the best part of your journey so far? Any moments that you've mentally framed and hung on the wall?

Signing my books at San Diego Comic-Con was amazing, and was not only the best part of my journey so far, but ranks among the best moments of my life, period. Attending the Random House after-party and meeting so many talented authors was also an incredible and life-affirming experience.

And the future? What's on the horizon for you and your fans?

Hopefully book 3 of the Machinations series! I also have a Western fantasy waiting in the wings that I hope to sell, and a plethora of other sci-fi and fantasy ideas that I’m excited to explore.

What's the most important thing you think authors should be doing to help their careers right now, particularly in this unsteady and saturated market?

Oh, man. I don’t know. To be honest, this market is one of the toughest in recent history. I think you just have to keep writing, keep putting your work out there, and hope for the best. Luck plays a larger role than anyone really wants to admit, but writing a great book definitely increases your chances of success!

Got any other jaw-dropping talents or party tricks you can share? They don't have to be writing related!

I can quote the entirety of Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl nearly line-for-line. I was a fun kid, as you can imagine.

Brilliant, right? Thanks so much for your insight, Hayley, I've loved having you on the blog.

​If you want to buy Counterpart and follow Hayley then here are some links that should help!

Hayley Stone has lived her entire life in sunny California, where the weather is usually perfect and nothing as exciting as a robot apocalypse ever happens. When not reading or writing, she freelances as a graphic designer, falls in love with videogame characters, and analyzes buildings for velociraptor entry points. She holds a bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in German from California State University, Sacramento. Counterpart is her second novel, and a choice for Amazon’s Best Sci-fi and Fantasy Books of the Month for October.​Website | Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Pinterest

As many of you already know, I work for a brand new (launched in March this year!) small press - Lakewater Press. I'm one of the editors there, but I also dabble in every aspect of the business, from marketing and publicity to design and social media. That's what's so great about Lakewater: everyone is encouraged to be involved with a book from it's acquisition to months after its publication. And I love that. Everyone on the tiny team, including the authors, has something to offer, ideas and opportunities they might read about or stumble across, and information is shared. I feel very blessed to a part of this close-knit, friendly company.

But anyway, I digress. The press has so many exciting things going on right now, including fab opportunities for readers; because although incredibly author-friendly, Lakewater Press loves booklovers and books more than anything else. So, with plenty of week-long 99c/p deals going on regularly, Goodreads giveaways and opportunities for readers to get their hands on eARCs of their forthcoming books, they are currently running an amazing Facebook giveaway.

​In the hope of connecting with more readers, the press are giving away a Kindle, a $50 Amazon voucher, and ALL of their ebooks! I mean, that's pretty amazing. All you have to do to enter is like their Facebook page and the post. Simple. Of course, they would also love you to share it and tag some friends to spread the love, but that's not a condition of entry. Here's the link, and I suggest getting over there quick before the contest ends on Monday!

​And finally, they are building their street team. Lakeys will be offered so many wonderful things, from swag to exclusive material from Lakewater authors to sneaky peeks into forthcoming titles and so much more. In return all they ask for is a few RTs, shares and likes and some book and author love. Pretty cool, I think. Who wouldn't want free stuff?! So, if you're interested or know a bookworm who might be, just sign up here!

​Overall, in this wobbly world of publishing right now, this is a fresh, positive face, and one that intends to evolve gradually and carefully, but having a bunch of fun in the process. I'd watch out for these guys (me!) if I were you! Check out their website to find out more about them!

Today, I am honoured to bring you a very special interview. My guest is Heather Brewer, an Art Director for Discovery House, a publishing house specializing in non-fiction and children’s literature. She's been in publishing for nearly 20 years. Some of the bestselling authors she’s worked with include Mark Batterson, Crystal Bowman, Jen Bricker, David Kinnaman, Gabe Lyons, and Mo Isom. This insightful interview is a must read if you are at all interested in the goings on behind the closed doors of a publishing house. And, I trust most writers are!

Heather also writes middle grade fiction and is represented by Rebecca Angus at Golden Wheat Literary. Heather and her husband, Chad, live in Michigan with their two children. Together they spend as much time as possible camping, hiking, jumping in lakes, getting lost, and eating s’mores.

​​So, let's get going! Heather, what does a typical day at work involve? What did you do today, for example?

Today was a big day because I presented cover designs for our Fall ’17 list to the Marketing and Editorial team. These are intense, high-stakes meetings because cover art is crucial to the success of a book. Design, like publishing, is subjective. To keep the team on track, I review the strategy for each title before presenting the designs, and then feedback is framed within that strategy. In other words, the team is commenting on specific design elements that either work or don’t work for that title rather than giving personal opinions. This is an important approach because if we want a book to be successful we have to look at cover packaging from the viewpoint of its intended audience, and not from our personal aesthetics.

Back to my day, I spent the morning catching up on emails. My inbox is full of inquiries from designers and editors, question from the printer about pub dates and materials, marketing questions, etc. I also helped the design team with any questions they had on projects and reviewed their work, I approved a couple of press proofs, and researched illustrators for a manuscript that will be considered at Pub Board later this week. Over lunch I prepared the cover review presentation. It took us two hours to review six books. We decided on a final design for four of them, the other two need minor revisions and another review. The next step will be to present the selected cover art to the author.

I check out of work at 4 PM, usually a few minutes late and running out of a meeting. My husband works most evenings, so I have to get home to shuttle the kids from one activity to the next, make dinner, help with homework, etc. Once they’re in bed I typically spend another hour or two responding to emails, reading manuscripts, or doing research.

How do you pair up a writer and illustrator?

A lot of it has to do with voice. As a writing community, many of us are familiar with voice in manuscripts. Illustrations have a voice too. The weight of the lines, the color palette, the composition, all work together to create a tone and a voice. I’m looking for illustrators whose voice will compliment the author’s. I’m also looking for illustrators that will connect with the message of the book. If the illustrator doesn’t connect with the message, it’s going to be very difficult, no matter how talented the artist is, to get good illustrations. A pre-requisite for me to consider an illustrator is diversity represented in their portfolio. Because our parent company is global (we have offices in 37 countries), every children’s book we produce is created with a global mindset. When a child in Singapore picks up one of our books, I want them to see themselves in it as much as a child in Brazil, or the UK.

Do you have a favourite style of illustration or genre?

I really don’t. There are many talented illustrators, and when the right illustrator connects with the right project, their work sings no matter the style or genre. For me, that’s where the magic happens.

Can you give us an insight into the part of the process you have in making a book?

I’m involved in the process from beginning to end. Right now I’m helping develop products for our children’s line and review manuscripts before we accept them into the publishing house. Once we accept a manuscript, my main responsibilities are to create the packaging (cover art and interior). This process starts anywhere from a few weeks to a few months after a manuscript is acquired, but almost always a year or more before pub date and hopefully after there’s a final title.

Twelve to fourteen months before pub date I have a Cover Direction Meeting with editorial and marketing where we identify hook, target audience, selling points, and trends in cover design. Based on our discussions in that meeting, I write a Creative Brief and make a mood board for each book. I send those to a freelance designer who I’ll work with for 6-8 weeks, going through several rounds of designs, before I present them to the team. Depending on the project I could also be hiring photographers, illustrators, or hand-lettering artists to contribute to the cover design.

The goal is to have a final cover design for our sales team to pitch to their accounts as soon as possible. There’s a lapse of three to six months from when cover art is approved to when the mechanical files are created for printing. This is also when the spine and back cover is designed. I have plenty to do during that three months lapse; I’ve already begun writing creative briefs and assigning covers for the next list, overseeing the typesetting of interiors, and art directing all of the marketing materials to promote the forthcoming titles (direct mail pieces, shareables, printed ads, postcards, . . . ), not to mention my duties on pub board, helping develop marketing plans, and feeding my design team bagels and coffee so they don’t burn out.

What's the best part of your job?

When I walk into work and there’s a newly printed book waiting on my desk. As author’s we talk about our book babies, it’s very much the same for the publishing team. There is something special about bringing a book into the world.

And the worst?

When an author is disappointed with their cover. I use our team’s experience and expertise to inform how the design will perform in the market; the author tends to have a personal approach/connection. When the two don’t align, it can be crushing.

Have you worked in any other areas of publishing?

My arena has always been design centered. My career started at age 19 as a typesetter (or book interior designer) for Baker Publishing Group. From there I moved into marketing design. I did that for ten years before being promoted to Art Director where my responsibilities focused solely on cover art. Earlier this year I accepted a position as Art Director with Discovery House and my responsibilities expanded to include all areas of my past experience and personal interests: cover art, interior page design, marketing design, strategy, and product development.

Can you tell us about any of the current projects you're working on?

One of the most important projects I’m working on is deciding how to grow our children’s line of books. This is a new area for Discovery House, so there is a lot of work to do. We’re asking ourselves questions like: What kind of content do we want to be known for? What audience are we serving? Where do we want to be in five years, ten? There are a lot of questions we need to answer before we can make informed decisions.

As part of this initiative, I’m working on a line of children’s resource books with illustrator Luke Flowers. I get excited every time my email pings with a new illustration. It’s really fun to see pencil sketches evolve into colorful, whimsical art.

You also write, could you tell us about what your writing?

I have a book currently on submission titled Brave Mountain. It is a Middle Grade survival story about Dean, a thirteen year old girl, who leaves her family in the wilderness of Montana in order to save them, trekking across the mountains alone with nothing but her bike and a backpack. The mountain holds many dangers, but the greatest hurdle is her own anxiety and fear. This is a book that was born out of my love of nature and wild places, mountain biking, and the question of what does it mean to truly be brave?

My second book will be going on submission soon. Owasippe Legacy (oh-WAH-sipee) is a middle grade fantasy about four cousins that stumble into a timeless adventure to uncover the mystery behind Chief Owasippe’s Legend and the disappearance of his two sons. The story is told from three POV’s: the responsible older sister, the younger fighting-for-independence brother, and the Ojibwe boy who must prove to his father that he’s ready to be a Brave.

I love the unique relationships cousins have, this wonderful combination akin to best friends and siblings. It was something I wanted to explore alongside the more serious, complicated relationship of brothers and sisters. There’s a lot of banter, judgment, and love in this cast.

The idea for the book is from a story told at our local summer camps. Our family spends a lot of time hiking and mountain biking the trails where this story takes place and it’s captured our imaginations. However, there’s a great responsibility when writing about cultures other than our own. Before I started I reached out to my friend Brian who is a Pottawatomi dancer and highly involved in the local tribe. Brian was incredibly generous in sharing his wealth of knowledge in local Native American history, culture, and spirituality. He’s been an unfailing support throughout the entire process. I was nervous about writing this story, but Brian has turned it into a wonderful, collaborative, learning experience.

My current WIP is a departure from kid lit and is loosely autobiographical. It’s a women’s contemporary fiction about a 30 year-old who’s stalled in her career and personal life. It will take a cynical inside look at Christian publishing (there’s an endless supply of fodder between my personal experiences and this unique industry). The setting is Stars Hollow meets the Midwest. There’ll be plenty of quirky characters, including a Neil Diamond Tribute Band, a mom’s weekly running group, and since it’s a small town, she’s constantly running into old high school classmates at the most inconvenient times.

I'm thrilled to be a part of my friend and fellow Pitch Wars mentor Hayley Stone's book release blitz today! Counterpart is born! Check it out...

The high-intensity sci-fi thriller series that began with Machinations continues as reincarnated insurgent Rhona Long faces off against the one enemy she can’t outwit: her own clone.

The machines believed their extermination of the human race would be over as quickly as it began. They were wrong. As the war against extinction intensifies, people are beginning to gain the upper hand.

Commander Rhona Long understands survival better than most. Killed in combat, she was brought back to life using her DNA, and she’s forged a new, even more powerful identity. Now the leader of the resistance, she’s determined to ensure the machines are shut down for good.

But victory is elusive. The machines have a new technology designed to overcome humanity’s most advanced weaponry. Despite Rhona’s peacekeeping efforts, former nations are feuding over resources as old power struggles resurface. Worse, someone inside the resistance is sabotaging the human cause—someone who, from all appearances, seems to be Rhona . . . or her exact replica.

“This violent, bloody, romantic tale is full of awesome mechanical foes and authentic characters you love or hate, like real people . . . The nuances of the title promise more than meets the eye, and the prose delivers.”- Perihelion

“An SF techno-thriller with heart and soul.”– Alex Bledsoe, author of The Hum and the Shiver

Hayley Stone has lived her entire life in sunny California, where the weather is usually perfect and nothing as exciting as a robot apocalypse ever happens. When not reading or writing, she freelances as a graphic designer, falls in love with videogame characters, and analyzes buildings for velociraptor entry points. She holds a bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in German from California State University, Sacramento. Counterpart is her second novel, and a choice for Amazon’s Best Sci-fi and Fantasy Books of the Month for October.

​Fantastic! And I'm lucky as Hayley will be popping back to my blog soon to impart some writing wisdom!

I'm very excited to bring you today's interview. My victim happens to be the illustrator of Winell Road's cover, the fabulous Paul Mudie. I found Paul on Twitter after my plea for help and illustrator recommendations. And the minute I looked on his website, I just knew. The designs showcased in his gallery matched the vision I had of the style I wanted, so after a bit of back and forth discussing ideas, Paul disappeared, popping back occasionally with sketches for me to review, until eventually he nailed it. The process was fast and fun, and Paul was forever professional and polite - yes, I probably was extremely irritating with my demands and worries! I am super thrilled with the end result and the feedback from readers has expressed equal satisfaction.

​So please, readers, meet Paul.

1. How did you get started as an illustrator?

I suppose I’ve been an amateur illustrator all my life. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t doodling away with a pen or pencil, but I stated doing it professionally after leaving college in the early 90s.

2. What is your favourite genre to illustrate for?

Horror, fantasy and science fiction, but especially horror. For some reason, that’s the genre that seems to fire my imagination the most.

If I’m doing a commission, it all starts with the brief. The client usually gives me a pretty specific idea of what they want, and then it’s my job to visualise that. If I need to gather visual references I’ll go and do that, then create a rough sketch image, and send that to the client for approval. If they’re happy with the way it’s going then I’ll continue working, showing the work to the client as it progresses to make sure I’ve not gone off the rails, and eventually – hopefully – I deliver a finished image that the client is happy with.

If they’re not happy with the initial rough then I re-think my approach and try to come up with a new concept that better represents what the client has in mind. This doesn’t happen too often, thankfully!

I paint digitally, in Photoshop, using a graphic tablet. I used to work in traditional media but over the years the digital side has been creeping in until I just became more comfortable working that way from scratch. It saves time faffing about with scanners and is very flexible and convenient way to work. Many people seem to be surprised that I don’t work with actual paint, so I think that’s a good sign.

Can you explain the relationship and involvement between illustrator and writer?

I think the relationship is very important. It’s my job to serve the writer’s vision, and I always try to stick as closely to the spirit of the work, and the detail of what they’ve written, as possible. It always irritates me when I see an illustration of a character or creature that differs from the written description. That’s an illustrator who hasn’t done their homework!

How much information do you need before you start work on a commission?

It depends on the commission. Sometimes I’m just given a very simple and loose idea of what’s needed (“Give me a werewolf!”) but if I’m to illustrate specific characters or scenes from a novel, for example, I need all the descriptive detail I can get to make sure I’m correctly representing the written work. I like to be as accurate as possible regarding period costumes, architecture etc, so I will look for any visual references that’ll help me get those things right. Google image searches are a great help!

How did you find your particular style?

Hard to say, really. I think I see things in a certain way and that tends to inform the work I do. I’ve also been influenced by other artists and illustrators – people like Gustave Dore, HR Giger, and Tim White, to name a few. I tend towards a realistic style, but I also want my illustrations to look like illustrations, not photos.

Do you think your style has changed since you started?

Yes and no. I think there’s a basic look to my work that probably hasn’t changed much but I think it’s evolved in small ways as I’ve learned new techniques and so on. I can certainly see the difference between my recent work and my older pieces, but I don’t know if anyone else can!

​Do you ever get creative block?

There are times when I just can’t seem to visualise the thing as clearly as I need to, or the creative spark isn’t quite there. Thankfully, that doesn’t happen too often. I’m usually quite quick to see the image in my head and then get cracking on turning it into reality.

What's the best/fun and worst/most difficult parts of your job?

The best part is when I’m working on a project that inspires me, the brief gives me a good, clear picture in my head, and the final image matches up with – or turns out better than – what I had initially visualised. Best of all, I’m always pleased if the client is pleased.

The most difficult part is if I find myself in the situation described in the previous answer. If I start out with a shaky idea, and get myself in a mess trying to make it work or I’m visualising something that doesn’t seem to match up with what the client has in mind, then it can get pretty frustrating. But as I said, that’s a rare occurrence. Illustration is generally good fun!

Do you have any future projects on the horizon that you can share with us?

I’m rather excited about a graphic novel project that I’m currently working on. I can’t go into too much detail but it’s based on the work of one of my favourite horror authors. If things work out, this will be my first venture into the wonderful world of comics. It’s an area I’ve tried to get into a few times over the years, without success. So I’ve got high hopes for that one!​

Wow! Super insightful.

​Thank you so much to Paul for taking the time to answer my questions.

If you would like to see more of Paul's illustrations or commission him for a piece of art, check out his website here and follow him on Twitter here!